Anachronism
by Danica Napier
Summary: Albus Potter has never felt like he belonged in his time. But one day, when he and his friend Scorpius find a red journal in the Slytherin common room, they are transported to the Marauder Era, where he meets the Marauders, Lily, and his true love. ASP/MM


**Hello! I thought of this story when I was bored and started reading the dictionary. As soon as I found the word anachronism, I started thinking. Recently, I have started reading more Next Generation fanfics, and I decided to do another one, in addition to my recently added Lucy/Lorcan. This is an Albus Severus Potter/Marlene McKinnon! Yup, I'm the first one to write about them! I'm a pioneer when it comes to this kind of stuff. You know, strange pairings. Enjoy! **

_Anachronism: the error of placing a person or thing in the wrong period/one that is chronologically out of place_

"Albie! Albie, can you teach me how to fly?" a nine year old Lily Luna Potter shouted from outside. Albus couldn't ignore her because it was impossible not to hear her with his open window.

"Why doesn't Teddy teach you?" he yelled back. Teddy and Lily were extremely close, even though Teddy was nineteen, ten years older than Lily.

"No thanks!" He almost laughed. He just remembered that Teddy, like his father, was not a fan of flying. "I prefer to keep my feet on the ground!" Albus went over to the window and looked down at his sister and 'cousin.'

"What about James, then?" Teddy asked, looking over worriedly at Lily, who was starting to get impatient. "Surely he'll help his sister. He's nothing else to do."

This time, Albus laughed. "Oh please, James won't help. He's too busy looking in the mirror."

Teddy rolled his eyes and turned to Lily. "Alright Lils, I'll fly just this once."

"For me?" she asked dramatically, and Albus smiled.

"Just for you, Lilypad." Teddy grinned at her and went to get two broomsticks, while Lily sat on the grass and waited for him like a smile that could rival a princess's.

Albus was glad that it was a Saturday, so Teddy could keep his sister occupied. The only thing that was casting a shadow over this sunny day was the fact that next week was his first day at Hogwarts. James had kept his on edge all of this week, saying that he'd be in Slytherin. Albus was scared that James would be right. And he didn't want to disappoint his family. Most of them were in Gryffindor, except for Molly, who was in Hufflepuff, and Victoire and Lucy, who were in Ravenclaw. The rest were in Gryffindor.

"Albus! Come 'ere, would you?" James yelled excitedly from down the hall. "Merlin, what's taking so long? Get your arse down here, Al!"

Albus groaned but got up to go to James's room. His brother's room was all the way down the hallway, and along the way he tripped on Lily's sneaker and James's wand. He bent down and brought the wand with him.

"You left your wand in the hall again, James," Albus sighed. James ignored him.

"Look at this, Al!" James proudly presented a small, beat-up object in the palm of his hand.

"What exactly is that?" Albus asked, pushing his glasses up his nose. Then, as soon as he could see it clearer, he gasped. "Is that a time turner? How the bloody- Hey!"

James had stuffed a sock in his mouth. "Shut up! Don't say it so loudly! Mum's downstairs!"

Albus spit out the sock and glared at his brother. "Where did you get it? Did you steal it?"

"Well…" James trailed off, letting out a breathless laugh. "I found it in the attic."

"Whose is it? Dad's?" Albus asked, and James nodded.

"But isn't this awesome, Al?" asked James. "We can go back in time!"

"You're a git!" Albus said angrily. "Put that back! You'll get in trouble if Mum or Dad find out!"

"If Mum and Dad find out what?" Ginny Potter stood in the doorway, her hands on her hips. "Is that a time turner? James Sirius Potter, where did you get that?"

"From the attic," James grumbled, and he sent a glare at Albus, who was smiling triumphantly. He hated when James got away with things.

Ginny sighed. "You know not to go looking through your father's school stuff. Now, go outside and fly with Lily and Teddy, and I won't tell Dad."

"Thanks Mum, you're the best!" James gave her a quick hug before sprinting down the stairs.

"Albus?" Ginny was looking at him with an amused expression. "Are you alright?"

Albus nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine, Mum. See you later." He ran down the hall to his room, where he sat down on his bed and smiled. "This is the first time that James couldn't frame something on me."

He was smiling for the rest of the day, the time turner far from his mind.

* * *

><p>Five years later, everything was the same, but different. Albus had been sorted into Slytherin and was now in his sixth year, and so had his little sister, Lily (no one could barely believe their eyes or ears when they heard the Sorting Hat yell Slytherin for little Lily Luna). Their cousin, Hugo Weasley, had been sorted into Hufflepuff, and Rose, the cousin that Albus was closest to, had been sorted into Gryffindor.<p>

James, who was in his last year, was going through a mid mid-life crisis. Or, at least that was what Albus thought. And unfortunately for him, he was dragged into it too, along with the whole of the Potter-Weasley family. Albus would've been content to just sit and read a book, but no, James Potter II had to notice a small, shy sixth year Ravenclaw named Evie Simmons, and now the whole family was trying to get them together. But, since Albus was in sixth year, and happened to be friends with Evie, James was pressuring Albus into talking to Evie about said brother.

"Said crazy brother," Albus mumbled as he stopped in front of the Ravenclaw entrance. Within one second, the entrance opened, and Evie came out with a small smile on her face.

"Oh, hi Albus," Evie said in a small voice. "How are you today? Is everything alright with your brother?"

Albus snorted in his head. He had told Evie that James was having a nervous breakdown from all of the studying he had to do for NEWT's.

"He's doing well, thank you," said Albus, and then he noticed that she was holding a large book in her hand. "What book is that?"

"It's a book on the Order of the Phoenix, original and the most recent," Evie said, her eyes lighting up. "It's rather fascinating, though it's tragic that a lot of them had to die."

"Yes, it is," Albus agreed. "Do you want to go to the library?"

"Actually, that's where I was headed," said Evie, grinning. "We can read this book together."

"Alright," said Albus, and they both started walking down the stairs. He didn't want to mention that he already knew about the Order, but he supposed that he could find out more about the original Order.

As they walked down towards the library, he wondered where James was. Usually, James was somewhere near him so he could hear what Albus was saying about him, but really, Albus knew that James was practically stalking Evie.

The library was practically empty, though Albus supposed it was because he and Evie had finished dinner early. They sat down at one of the tables near the back. Evie opened the book slowly to a random page and they saw a photograph of a pretty blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman.

"Marlene McKinnon," Albus read aloud, and he didn't know why, but he liked the sound of her name when he said it.

"Oh yeah," said Evie, snapping her fingers. "She and her whole family were killed the summer of 1981."

"That's awful," said Albus. "By Death Eaters?"

"Yes, they raided the McKinnons' home." Evie sighed. "I'm thankful that we don't live in a time of war, but I feel so bad when I think about how lucky we are."

"Don't feel bad, Evie," Albus said. "You can't pick when you're born, otherwise I would've been born on any other day but my father's birthday." He sighed too. "It's so hard to live up to my father, because of what he did in the war. Everyone expects so much of me, and because I'm named after Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape, it only adds to being Harry Potter's son."

Evie put her hand on his shoulder, and Albus could imagine James glaring at him.

"It's alright, Al," she said soothingly. "You're doing a great job anyway. I mean, look at you, you're smart, you're good-looking, you're kind, and you have an amazing family who's always going to be there to support you, no matter what you do. At least you're not me. You probably fancy someone who fancies you back, unlike me, because I can't even talk when I'm near him." She sounded a bit upset.

Albus's head snapped up and he looked into Evie's green eyes. "Who do you fancy?" He hoped that it wasn't some random bloke that he didn't know. If James found out that Evie fancied someone who wasn't him, that bloke would be hexed till his arse fell off.

"No one." Evie's blush gave her away. Albus laughed.

"It's fine, Evie, I won't tell anyone. Promise."

"Okay. I guess I'll tell you. I fancy Ja-"

"Hey Al! Hi Evie!" Albus mentally groaned. Of course James would interrupt at an important moment.

"Hi James," Evie said quietly, her head down.

"James, what do you want?" Albus asked, partly annoyed.

"I found it," said James, and Albus stared at him until he responded. "I found the time turner. Mum had given it to Lily for safekeeping. Stupid, right?" James snorted, and Albus let out a small laugh.

"And how'd you get it?" Evie asked. "She's a Slytherin, not to mention a girl, so how'd you manage to get that time turner?"

"I have my ways," James said, winking at Evie. "And I didn't go into the snake den. No way. No offense, Al. But I found out about Lily's little crush and I threatened to tell everyone, including her crush, at the next Potter-Weasley gathering."

"So she has a crush on someone in the family?" Albus asked, shocked. "Incest, much?"

James rolled his gray eyes. "You're a git, Al. It's Teddy!"

"She fancies Teddy?" Albus burst out. "Like, Teddy Lupin, son of Remus and Nymphadora Lupin, grandson of Andromeda Tonks, metamorphmagus, Ted Remus Lupin?" He stopped to breathe for a moment, not believing James. "Teddy Lupin, who's dating Victoire?"

"Do we know another Teddy Lupin?" James asked sarcastically. "I want to meet him."

"Whatever, James." Albus closed his eyes for a minute to calm himself down. "So, what about the time turner? Why are you so interested in it?"

"He wants to go to the future, maybe," said Evie, and James shook his head.

"Not the future. The past." Albus and Evie stared at him. "What? Fred, Roxy, and I want to meet the original Marauders!"

"That's an awful idea, especially during school," said Albus frankly.

"I don't think you should go back in time," said Evie, looking at James. "You might change something that isn't supposed to be changed and mess up everything that takes place after. Time is fragile. Even little things, like the falling of a spoon, or an O on a test, can change today."

"Alright," James said, depressed. "I'll go give the time turner back to Lily." He got up and walked away.

"I feel bad," Evie said, looking at the spot where James had been sitting. "Maybe we should've been nicer."

"No, he needed to hear it," said Albus in a monotone voice, before he grinned at Evie. "So, you fancy my brother?"

Evie's face turned a bright red. "No." Albus raised an eyebrow. "Oh alright, yes, I fancy James Potter!"

"Shhh!" Madam Pince gave them a scolding look before walking away.

"That's great Evie," said Albus, "because James fancies you back."

"He does?" she asked, and she was so surprised that Albus had to laugh.

"Yes," said Albus.

Moments later, Evie decided to go to bed, so Albus went back down to the Slytherin common room, where his best friend, Scorpius Malfoy, was waiting with a smirk on his face.

"So, Simmons likes Potter?" he asked, and Albus raised his eyebrow.

"You actually care, Malfoy?" Even though they were best friends, they still did call each other by their last names, though mostly for fun.

"Of course I do, Potter," said Scorpius, rolling his eyes. "Since when have I not cared about my girlfriend's family?"

"Girlfriend? Who's your girlfriend?" Albus asked before it popped into his brain. "You're dating Rose now?"

"Yes, Weasley and I have been an item for a couple days now," Scorpius said proudly, his normally cold gray eyes warm.

"And you didn't tell me because…?" Albus was slightly surprised that Scorpius hadn't told him already. Usually he knew all about Scorpius's dating exploits. He'd even dated Dominique, who was James's age, before. Though it technically wasn't a real date, since they were both using each other to make Rose and Lysander Scamander jealous.

"You were too busy with Simmons. I was almost starting to think that you fancied her until I saw Potter stalking her," Scorpius said, smirking again. Albus swore that one day, no matter how good of a friend Scorpius was, he would punch that smirk off his face.

"Really Potter, I'm starting to feel bad for you, and you know that I never feel bad." Albus looked up and saw that Scorpius was looking at him strangely. "Did you hear what I just said?"

"No, sorry," mumbled Albus. "What'd you say?"

"I'm starting to feel bad for you. You've never been on one bloody date, and you do know that it is hard to be the best looking one out of the both of us!" Scorpius exclaimed dramatically, and Albus rolled his eyes. "Whatever. But the point is, you need to go on a date. I've already made a list." Scorpius swiftly put a piece of paper in Albus's hand.

Albus opened it up and read through the names, and stopped when he saw all of his female relatives named. "You really think I'm going to date my sister? Or my cousins? Molly? Roxanne?"

"Foxy Roxy," Scorpius said approvingly, and Albus glared at him. "Never mind."

"You seriously put Victoire in here? She's dating Teddy! And Lucy? She's dating Lorcan."

"Not really, he's saying that they're friends going to Hogsmeade together, but we all know that he's just denying his feelings for her. It's so obvious that he considers her his sun, and that he'd do anything for her, like jump in front of a train for her."

Albus burst out laughing. "Wow, Malfoy, I didn't know you were such a sap. And that you like Muggle music, like Grenade by Bruno Mars."

"Shut up, Potter!" Scorpius said, his cheeks flushed. "It's true. And how do you know that song if you don't listen to it?"

"Please," Albus snorted. "If you live with Lily, you'll memorize any song written from the year 2000 till now. Sometimes, my mom sings to Lady Gaga."

"That's just disturbing," Scorpius said, shivering. "Anyway, all I'm saying is that you should really get a date for the next Hogsmeade trip."

"Fine," said Albus, and he looked over to a desk and saw a dirty red journal with the initials 'M.M.' engraved on the front. "Whose is that?" He pointed to the journal.

"I don't know," said Scorpius, walking over and picking up the journal. "I don't know anyone whose initials are 'M.M.', unless you count Moaning Myrtle."

"It's not her, obviously, because last time I checked, ghosts can't pick up quills and write in journals," said Albus, a bit sarcastically.

"Well there was that one movie that Lily made us watch where that ghost could pick up things," said Scorpius, and Albus rolled his eyes.

"That was a TV show, and yeah, it was Being Human, which isn't real."

"It looked pretty real," Scorpius said so seriously that Albus had to question his intelligence.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Albus said, and he opened the journal to see that the page was blank. He flipped through all of the pages and they were all blank. "Whoever's journal this is hasn't written anything in it."

"Well, write in it then, and see if it's been charmed to write a response," said Scorpius, handing Albus a quill from his robes. "It's clean."

"Good," said Albus, and he sat down at the desk and flipped to the middle of the journal. Scorpius stood behind him, looking over his shoulder. Albus wrote: _Hello. My name is Albus Potter. _

He didn't expect anything at first, and turned around to face Scorpius when his best friend gasped. He looked down at the journal and read the fine cursive slowly.

_My name is Marlene. _

"Do you know a Marlene, Al?" Scorpius asked, sounding a bit fearful.

"Not at all," Albus whispered.

"Write something back," said Scorpius hesitantly. Albus thought for a moment before writing: _Who are you? Where are you? Where are you from? Are you in Hogwarts? _

The Slytherin common room was silent except for the fire in the fireplace, and Albus wished that he was in the Great Hall. The silence was starting to freak him out.

"Scorp?" Albus hadn't called him that for a long time.

"Al, Al, look!" Scorpius practically screamed.

_This is the journal of Marlene McKinnon, Gryffindor._

_This is my journal. This is my life at Hogwarts in the year of 1977. _

Albus gasped and before he knew it, a bright light, almost like a star, starting forming in the middle of the page. A wind picked up and ruffled the pages until it got to the first page, and Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy were sucked into the pages of Marlene McKinnon's journal.

* * *

><p>"Oh my God, oh my Merlin, oh my Buddha, oh my whatever-else-there-is-out-there-that's-a-deity, where the bloody hell are we?" Scorpius screamed.<p>

Albus rubbed the back of his head. "Shut up, Malfoy, you're giving me a bloody headache!"

"Well forgive me for giving you a headache, but I'm pretty sure finding out where we are is more important than pain in your black-haired head!" Scorpius let out a noise that sounded like a constipated cow. "We're gonna die slow and painful deaths, Potter!"

"You talking to me?" They both looked over to see a tall, black-haired man who looked exactly like James Sirius Potter, except for this man's hazel eyes, because Aunt Hermione said that James Potter II had the same eyes as Sirius Black. Gray. But Albus and Scorpius stood there, staring at the man otherwise known as James Potter I before they both passed out.

* * *

><p>Albus opened his eyes and hissed when his eyes hurt because of how bright it was.<p>

"Al?"

"Scorp?"

He sat up and rubbed his eyes before noticing that he wasn't wearing his glasses. "I should really get contacts."

"Yes you should, I mean seriously, you look way too much like James," said Scorpius. "I don't think glasses suit your face, and you wear them like such a geek, because you're constantly cleaning them and making sure they're straight on your face. It works for James because he wears them like he owns them, you know."

"I don't know," said Albus, "but I will get contacts, because glasses do annoy me."

"Good, and I'll fix your hair, and we'll be the hottest blokes at Hogwarts in our year."

"Oh, thank goodness you're both awake." Albus and Scorpius looked over and saw a much younger Madam Pomfrey walking towards them. "How do you feel?"

"Good," they both answered, and she looked them over carefully before speaking again.

"Do any of you feel pain anywhere? Even a headache?" Madam Pomfrey asked.

Both shook their heads, and Madam Pomfrey sighed.

"Alright, Professor Dumbledore will be here in a few minutes. Keep yourselves occupied," she said before she left them alone in the infirmary.

"This is gonna be awkward," Scorpius said, breaking the silence. "What are we going to say? That we're from the future, and that we were sucked through Marlene McKinnon's journal?"

"That's exactly what we're not going to say," said Albus, staring at the wall.

"Wasn't Marlene McKinnon in the original Order?" asked Scorpius.

"Yeah. Do you know what's funny?" Albus asked, turning to his friend, and Scorpius shook his head. "What's funny is that Evie was reading a book on the original and second Order, and when she opened up to a random page, she opened up to Marlene McKinnon's page."

"That's creepy," said Scorpius. "Maybe it's fate that we're supposed to be here. Maybe Simmons having that book and opening to McKinnon's page was a sign."

"A sign of what, may I ask?"

They both let out small gasps when they heard the unfamiliar voice. They turned and saw Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore himself, Albus Potter's partial namesake.

"A road sign," Scorpius quickly said, and Albus mentally slapped himself. He should've spoke. Scorpius was good at coming up with lies, but not saying them, or coming up with them if he didn't have time to think about what to say.

"My name is Professor Dumbledore. May I ask what your names are, boys?"

"Scorpi-" Scorpius started when Albus coughed and gave him a look. "Scorpio Malfitz."

Albus would've laughed if he had the time, so he quickly came up with a name. "I'm Albert Potts."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Malfitz and Mr. Potts," said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling, and as soon as Albus caught Dumbledore's eyes, he knew that Dumbledore knew that they were lying. "Yesterday, my student, James Potter, found you both lying on the ground in the middle of the hallway. I do not think you are from here."

"We're not," said Albus, and Dumbledore smiled.

"I won't ask where you are from, but until you know how to get back, you may stay here. I'll just tell the students at dinner tonight that you're from Durmstrang. You can both stay in a House of your choice."

"Gryffindor," Albus said before Scorpius could answer.

Dumbledore looked down and saw their Slytherin robes. "You don't want to stay in Slytherin?"

"Professor Dumbledore, we know about things that you won't for a while. We'd prefer Gryffindor," Scorpius said a bit rudely.

"I understand, Mr. Malfitz," said Dumbledore, not phased by Scorpius's rudeness. Albus was impressed by his namesake. "Well, I'll give you both three sets of Gryffindor robes, and the password for Gryffindor Tower is Fortuna Minor. You will go to the top and two beds will be set up there for you. Come down to the Great Hall at seven, and I'll introduce you. Have a good day, Mr. Malfitz and Mr. Potts."

He Disapparated so quickly that Albus had to blink a couple times before realizing that Dumbledore was gone.

"Well, let's go," said Scorpius, getting off of his bed. Albus got up too and followed his friend out of the infirmary and to Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

><p>That night, Albus and Scorpius headed down to the Great Hall, ignoring the stares that they got from the other students. So far, Albus hadn't seen Marlene McKinnon, James Potter I or anyone else that he would know, like his grandmother or Sirius Black, Remus Lupin or Hestia Jones, who had died a couple years back in their time. Hestia had been crossing a busy street in London at night when she got hit by a drunk driver. She died later in the hospital, but not before she told Harry that she would say hello to Sirius for him.<p>

"There!" Scorpius pointed toward a tall, lanky man with sandy hair and scars on his face. "Remus Lupin! That means that James Potter and Sirius Black have to be near!"

Albus stared at Remus, thinking about how jealous Teddy would be if he ever found out that he himself had seen his father before he had.

"Poor bloke, he looks like he's gonna throw up any minute," said Scorpius, gesturing to Remus.

"He's a werewolf, and it's the full moon tonight. Do you think he's gonna be jumping for joy?" Albus asked sarcastically.

"Not exactly," said Scorpius, agreeing. "Sirius Black!"

"Where?" Albus asked, and he looked over and saw Remus talking to a tall, dark-haired man with a mischievous grin on his face, and gray eyes hauntingly familiar. James Sirius Potter's eyes. He did have one trait from his partial namesake.

James Potter I and Peter Pettigrew walked up to Remus and Sirius and then they all started heading towards the Great Hall. Albus and Scorpius went to follow them.

"I want to kill that rat, but then I'd mess up the future," Albus muttered to Scorpius, and he glared at the back of Peter's head.

"Hey, Evans! Go out with me?" James asked loudly, and Sirius started laughing a bark-like laugh. Albus shuddered out how much his brother resembled James Potter I and Sirius Black. But he was surprised at how much James Sirius resembled Sirius, because they weren't actually related. It seemed that half of James and half of Sirius lived in his brother. That thought made Albus let a small smile onto his face.

"Whoa, your grandmother's hot," Scorpius said, letting out a low whistle, and Albus smacked the back of his head. "Of course, Rosie's way hotter."

Albus watched his grandmother, Lily Evans Potter, walk towards James with a scowl on her pretty face. Her thick red hair framed her face perfectly, and he could see why his grandfather was attracted to her from the beginning.

"So, what do you say, Evans? Next weekend?" James asked, a cocky smile on his face, and Lily rolled her eyes.

"No." She walked away from him, and Albus saw James's face fall for a minute before he smiled and turned to the Marauders again. "She'll say yes one day."

"Of course she will," said Remus, and Albus could sense the sarcasm.

"Whatever," James said moodily, his smile gone. "She has to say yes. I'll wait till I'm eighty for her to say yes."

"Now that's commitment," said Scorpius rather loudly, and Sirius turned around and grinned at him.

"Nice one, mate!" They high-fived and James rolled his eyes.

"These are the ones that passed out," said James, and Sirius laughed.

"Why'd you pass out? James was too hot for you?"

Scorpius snorted. "Please, I'm hotter than a bloke who can barely get one girl to say yes to him."

Albus was afraid that James and Sirius would be mad, but instead, they both laughed hysterically. Remus simply stood there, smiling politely, and Peter let out a girlish giggle.

"Bloody hell, you're good," said Sirius. "What're your names?"

"Scorpio Malfitz," said Scorpius.

"Albert Potts, but you can just call me Al," said Albus.

"I'm Sirius Black, and this is James Potter, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew," Sirius said, pointing to his friends as he said their names. "We're the Marauders."

"We know," said Albus, and he regretted it instantly.

"How?" asked Remus, his eyes suspicious. "I thought you were both new here."

"Well, you're very famous around the school, you know," said Scorpius, and while the others seemed content with the answer, Remus still didn't seem convinced. Albus remembered from a conversation with his dad and Teddy that Remus was very perceptive, and was most likely to guess correctly about what people were thinking. Albus hoped that Remus wouldn't be able to guess that they weren't from this time period.

"Very true," said Sirius. "In fact, you might want to stick around us while you're here. Don't want you both to leave Hogwarts knowing that you weren't friends with the famous Marauders!"

"More like infamous," Remus muttered, and Albus let out a laugh.

"Whatever, infamous, famous, they're the same," said Sirius, ignoring Remus. "Until you leave, you will be the official Marauders' sidekicks."

"Alright then," Albus said, smiling. "Let's get dinner then, Marauders."

The Marauders led the way to their spot at the Gryffindor table, near Lily, a black-haired girl, two brown-haired girls and… Marlene McKinnon.

Scorpius elbowed him in the ribs, and Albus glared at him before turning back to Marlene. She was as beautiful as an angel, with her blonde hair and clear blue eyes. Albus couldn't help but stare.

"You like?" Sirius snickered, putting his hand on Albus's shoulder. "I'll tell you, she is one hot babe-"

"Are you serious?" Lily asked angrily, and Albus noticed that the black-haired girl next to Lily kept her head down. "Stop talking about girls like that, especially when there's one right here who-"

"Lily!" The black-haired girl looked up and Albus saw that it was Hestia Jones. He wanted to hug her and tell her that he was sorry that she had to die such a horrible death in the future. "It's fine!"

"No, it's-" Lily started when one of the two brown-haired girls interrupted.

"Are you two the exchange students from Durmstrang?" she asked. Albus and Scorpius nodded. She smiled and flipped her wavy brown hair out of her face. "I'm Alice Watson."

"Nice to meet you, Alice," Albus said politely. "I'm Albert Potts, and this is my friend Scorpio Malfitz."

Alice nodded and the other brown-haired girl spoke. "I'm Emmeline Vance." Her straight brown hair was held up in a high ponytail.

"Otherwise known as Emmy," Sirius added, and Emmeline scowled, but had an amused look in her eyes.

"Call me Emmy and I will hex you again, Black, and you know where it'll be this time," said Emmeline, an evil smirk on her face, and Lily and Scorpius laughed. Albus simply stood there with a smile, not really knowing what to do. "And obviously my dear friend Hes-"

"Shut up, Emmeline!" Hestia's normally rosy cheeks were the brightest shade of red. Albus smiled wider, remembering how easy it was to make Hestia blush.

"It looks like somebody fancies Pad-" James began and Remus cleared his throat.

"Let's sit down and eat instead of teasing poor Hestia." She smiled gratefully at Remus, and James sighed.

"Fine," said Sirius, and he winked at Hestia before they all went and sat down at an empty spot at the table, which was only five feet away from Lily, Hestia, Emmeline, Alice and Marlene. Albus realized five minutes later that they hadn't spoken to Marlene. He would try later.

"I think Hestia likes you, Padfoot," said James, and Sirius grinned.

"I knew she couldn't resist my charm," Sirius said, flipping his wavy black hair.

"Remember, she's not going to go out with you if you ask her the way James asks Lily," said Scorpius, and Remus snickered from behind his book.

"So true," said Peter. Albus was sitting in between him and Scorpius, and he felt very uncomfortable sitting next to the man who was partly responsible for the death of his grandparents.

"Do you fancy her?" Albus asked. They all looked at Sirius.

"I think I love her," Sirius announced with a goofy smile on his face.

"Well, you better treat her right," said Lily, who suddenly appeared sat down beside James. "Or I swear I'll hex you ten times worse than Emmeline would."

"I'll keep that in mind, Lilykins," Sirius said, stuffing his mouth full with spaghetti.

"Stop eating with your mouth full. When you ask her on a date, you can't do that," said Lily. "And sit up straight. It's a wonder that you're not hunched over now like an old man."

"That's an insult to old men, Evans," James said, and Lily rolled her eyes.

"Lily!" Hestia came running up, her long black hair flying behind her.

"What happened?" asked Lily, turning to face her friend. Hestia whispered something into Lily's ear that made her face go as red as her hair, and before Lily could reply, Hestia laughed and ran back to her seat.

Apparently James heard what Hestia said, because he turned to Lily with a suave smile on his face and was about to speak when McGonagall spoke.

"May I have everyone's attention please?" McGonagall said from where all the teachers were sitting. "Professor Dumbledore will be speaking now."

"Good evening students," Dumbledore said from the podium. "Tonight, I will introduce to you two new students from Durmstrang. Their names are Scorpio Malfitz and and Albert Potts." Albus and Scorpius both stood up when their names were called.

It was mostly the Hufflepuffs and the Gryffindors that clapped. The Ravenclaws silently nodded and gave tight-lipped smiles at Albus and Scorpius, while the Slytherins just snickered and whispered amongst themselves.

"Alright, that's all. Resume." Dumbledore went back to his seat and sat down.

"Let's go so we have enough time to do our homework," said Remus, and the other Marauders groaned. "What?"

"Nobody likes doing their homework," said Scorpius. "Obviously."

"It's not just homework," said Remus, looking at his watch. Albus and Scorpius shared knowing looks.

"That's right, I have to write an essay for Astronomy," said James, and all of the Marauders got up. "Do you want to come, or do you wanna finish eating?"

"We'll finish eating," said Scorpius. "It's been a long day, and we've barely had food."

Remus nodded his head, understanding. "That's alright. We'll see you both tomorrow in class."

"See you tomorrow," said James. Sirius waved at them, and Peter gave them a small nod. They left the Great Hall quickly.

"Hey," said Alice, sliding down the bench to sit where Sirius had sat before. "Did they just leave you down here?"

"No, we decided to stay to finish dinner," said Albus. He was very aware that this girl, Alice Watson, was Professor Neville Longbottom's mother, who was tortured to insanity by the late Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Oh," Alice said. "Anyway, I don't think you met her, but this is my friend Marlene McKinnon."

Marlene was standing behind Alice with a smile on her pretty face. "Hi."

"Hello Marlene," said Scorpius politely. Albus gave her a quick smile. "I'm Scorpio Malfitz."

"I'm Albert Potts," said Albus. "You can just call me Al, if you want."

"Hi Scorpio, hi Al," Marlene said, and Albus felt shivers running down his arms at the sound of her angelic voice.

"I'm pretty sure we have the same schedule, because I don't think there's any more room in the other classes," said Alice. "It looks like you're stuck with us and the Marauders, though you two looked like you were getting along with those insufferable boys."

"They're funny," said Albus, and Alice nodded.

"I know they are," said Alice. "But also a bit cruel."

"Unfortunately," Marlene added, "that's why Lily won't go out with James. Their pranks are funny, but I don't think that they think about how humiliating it is for the person on the other side of the prank. Like Snape."

"But he's the one who called her a Mudblood," said Alice. "He deserved what he got."

"I know," Marlene sighed. "I would've done the same thing if I were Lily."

"What'd she do?" Scorpius asked.

"I'm not friends with Sev anymore," said Lily, her eyes sad but only for a second. "Do you two wanna come with us to Hogsmeade on Saturday?"

"Sure," Scorpius answered for Albus. "What's today? A Monday?"

"No, it's Thursday," Lily replied, giving him a strange look. "But anyway, before we go, we have a mission, and I think you and Al can help."

"What do you want us to do?" Albus asked.

"We're trying to get Sirius to ask Hestia out," said Marlene. "And we tried getting Hestia to ask him out, but she was adamant on sticking to tradition. You know, the bloke asks the girl, and not the other way around."

"I see," said Scorpius, scratching his chin, thinking. "You want us to see if Sirius is gonna ask Hestia out, and then tell you. But if he isn't, we have to get him to plan on asking her?"

"Exactly," said Emmeline, grinning. Lily, Alice and Marlene looked at Albus and Scorpius with pleading looks.

"Fine, we'll do it," Scorpius said, relenting.

But Albus had a weird feeling in his gut. "Why are you asking us to do this? You barely even know us."

"We feel like we can trust you," Lily said, speaking for herself, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene. "We don't know why, but we do."

* * *

><p>The next morning, Albus woke up, feeling excited and nervous at the same time. Apprehensive. His vision was blurry without his glasses, and he felt around the bedside table before finding them and putting them on. The dorm got clearer, and across from Albus, Scorpius was sitting up, his usually slicked back platinum-blonde hair messy.<p>

"You look great," Albus said sarcastically, and Scorpius scowled.

"Shut up. I haven't had the chance to beautify myself yet. You think it's easy to get my look?"

Albus sometimes wondered whether Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy was a male or female.

"Whatever," said Albus, getting off of his bed and towards the bathroom. "I'll be done in ten minutes, so you can 'beautify' yourself."

"If you spend only five minutes in there, I promise to pay for half of the price of your contacts," said Scorpius.

"I'll be done in four minutes and fifty nine seconds then," said Albus, smiling, and he slipped into the bathroom.

* * *

><p>An hour later, Albus and Scorpius were heading down to the Great Hall, not seeing the Marauders anyway. Albus assumed that they were still asleep, as they were early for breakfast. In fact, when they reached the Great Hall, there had to have been only thirty people altogether, including them.<p>

Albus saw Lily, Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene eating together, and he immediately walked towards them, purposely sitting next to Marlene. Scorpius noticed and bumped into his shoulder on purpose before sitting down next to him.

"Good morning," Marlene said, turning to Albus and Scorpius with a smile.

"Mornin'," Scorpius said.

"G'morning," said Albus, smiling back at her. They both stayed like that for however long, staring into each others eyes, before Emmeline and Alice coughed, and Hestia giggled.

"Marlene! Al!" Alice practically shouted their names. Marlene and Albus turned to face Alice when Emmeline, who was sitting beside Alice, smirked.

"Do you mind saving the lovesick stares for Hogsmeade? The rest of us don't need to barf now." Lily, Hestia, Alice and Scorpius laughed. But Emmeline wasn't finished. "What're you laughing at, Alice? I say the same for you! Especially when your boyfriend is Frank Longbottom, the one you've only fancied since first year!"

Alice's face turned as red as Lily's hair in response.

"Evans!" Everyone knew exactly who it was.

Lily closed her eyes for a minute before facing James. "What do you want so early in the morning, Potter?"

"You," James replied smoothly, a grin forming on his face. "Will you go with me to Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

"Hmm, let me think about it." Lily pretended to think hard for a moment. "No."

James's grin fell. "But-"

"Prongs!" Sirius came running into the Great Hall, holding something in his hand. "Help me!"

"Sirius, give me my chocolate!" Remus was running after him, but before he passed by, Albus saw a new scar on his face, this one running the length of his cheek.

"Even the most mature of the Marauders is still immature," said Emmeline, shaking her head, amused. "Seriously, the only thing that can make Remus do that is when someone steals his chocolate. He has a bit of an obsession, don't you think?"

"It's comfort food, maybe," said Marlene, watching Remus nearly tackle Sirius. "I heard that his mother is sick, so he's probably worried, which causes him to want to eat chocolate."

"Moony! Padfoot!" James yelled, and they both stopped to look at him before James grabbed the chocolate and ran out of the Great Hall, but not before winking at Lily. She, surprisingly, blushed a bit, but she turned away so nobody could see.

The only ones who saw her blush were Albus and Hestia, and they smiled at each other quickly before everyone turned to face each other again.

"Moving on," Alice said. "We should probably get to class now. Al, Scorpio, follow Lily, Hestia and I to Transfiguration. Emmeline and Marlene have Arithmancy now."

"See you later," Emmeline said, and she got up and stood behind Marlene. "C'mon, Marlene!"

"I'm coming!" Marlene laughed, pushing her blonde hair out of her face. "See you at lunch, Al. Scorpio." She followed Emmeline out of the Great Hall.

"Oh good, she's gone." Hestia let out a sigh of relief, and Lily, Alice, Scorpius and Albus gaped at her. "Not like that! I just need to ask Al something, and I can't if Marlene's here."

"What did you want to ask me?" asked Albus. "And why can't Marlene hear?"

"Because," said Hestia, and she smirked at him. "Do you fancy Marlene?"

Albus stared at her, open-mouthed.

Lily laughed. "As you now know, Al, for a girl that seems shy, Hestia's a bit outspoken."

"A bit?" Scorpius sputtered, laughing so hard he couldn't breathe. "Poor Albie can barely speak!"

"Well listen to yourself first, Malfitz!" Albus said, trying not to smile.

"So do you fancy her?" Hestia asked, her dark eyes gleaming.

"Well, she's- she's really pretty, but I only just met her. You can't fancy someone that quickly," Albus said.

"I guess," said Hestia, looking disappointed but also devious. "Well, now I can't tell you that she fancies you too- Whoops!"

"Hestia!" Alice shrieked. "You weren't supposed to say anything!"

Hestia shook her head. "Don't worry. Remember Albus, I could be just saying it, but I could be telling the truth. You pick one."

"How about instead of that, we go to Transfiguration," said Lily, and everyone agreed.

* * *

><p>Albus sighed and looked out the window. It was finally lunchtime, and he was just waiting for Scorpius to finish doing his hair. Classes had been okay, except for the Slytherins making fun of them. They had no idea that they were making fun of their own, but from a different time.<p>

He knew that classes would be easy this year, because in their time, it was April, and the material was pretty much the same. It meant that he could spend his time figuring out how to get back to the 2020's.

"Al!" He jumped at the sound of Sirius's voice. He and the rest of the Marauders stood in the doorway, grinning. "So, I heard that you and Scorpio are friendly with the lovely ladies."

The Marauders came in and sat themselves down on Scorpius's bed.

"Yeah, we're friends," said Albus, and then he remembered that he was supposed to get Sirius to ask Hestia out. He was worried that it would mess up the future, but then again, it was just a date anyway. It wasn't like it would change anything about James and Lily's deaths or Sirius going to Azkaban. Or Peter being a traitor. "So?"

"So, that's bloody amazing for us!" Sirius said, practically jumping up and down with excitement. "You can spy on them for us without actually spying, because they trust you!"

"I don't know," said Albus. "I live with a bunch of girl cousins, and let me tell you that if I ever did anything like that with them, they would rip my head off."

"They don't need to find out," said Sirius, and he put on a puppy-dog face, which was surprisingly good. Then again, his Animagus form was a dog.

"No," said Albus. "I'll tell you something if it's not that important."

"Fine." Sirius pouted for a minute before James spoke.

"Do you know if Lily's going with anyone to Hogsmeade?"

Albus shook his head. "No. She's just going with friends, except for Hestia."

"She's not going with Hestia?" asked Sirius, sounding a bit concerned. "Did they fight?"

"No, she's waiting for someone to ask her out," said Albus, giving Sirius a meaningful look. "Someone whose last name is Black."

"Regulus?" The Marauders and Albus groaned. "Oh! Me!"

"Even Wormy got that quicker than you, Pads!" James laughed, and Peter's cheeks flushed.

Albus pretended not to know their nicknames. "Wormy? Pads?"

"Oh, since you are an official ally slash sidekick of the Marauders, I suppose we should tell you our nicknames," said Sirius. "I'm Padfoot, or Pads. James is Prongs, Remus is Moony, and Peter is Wormtail or Wormy."

"Oh," said Albus. "Why?"

"Uh, because nicknames are fun?" Sirius wasn't sure of himself. Remus sighed, and James and Peter looked nervous.

"That's why my cousin calls me Albie," said Albus, and they all laughed.

Scorpius came out of the bathroom and looked at them all. "What're you all laughing about?"

"We'll clue him in later," said Albus, and they all went down to the Great Hall for lunch.

* * *

><p>As soon as classes were done, Lily, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene cornered Albus and Scorpius outside of the Potions classroom in the dungeons.<p>

"Is he going to ask her?" Alice asked excitedly.

"I'm not sure," said Albus. "He didn't even know that she wanted him to ask her. I even told him that she was waiting for someone to ask her whose last name is Black, and he guessed Regulus!"

"Black has the intelligence of a squirrel, but that would be insulting to squirrels everywhere," said Emmeline, rolling her eyes. "Peter might just be smarter than him."

"That's mean, Emmeline," said Marlene. "Peter's trying his best."

"It's not good enough," Emmeline muttered.

"Whatever," said Alice. "So, we need to get to work! Thank Merlin that Hestia is tutoring today!"

"Before we do anything, Al and Scorpio have to ask Sirius if he's planning on asking Hestia," said Lily, and she flipped her red hair before turning to Albus and Scorpius. "Meet us out near the Quidditch pitch in twenty minutes, and make sure Hestia and Sirius don't know what we're doing!" Lily, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene rushed up the stairs, leaving Albus and Scorpius behind.

"Well, let's get going!" Scorpius said, and they both ran up the stairs, their feet barely touching the stone steps.

They sped by other students heading back to their dorms after their last class and after giving the password to the Fat Lady, they went up to where the Marauders were lying in bed, talking.

"Sirius!" Scorpius shouted.

"What?" he asked.

"Are you going to ask Hestia out?" asked Albus, and Sirius immediately jumped off of his bed.

"That's what I was gonna do!" he exclaimed, and James got up too.

"I'll come with you, mate! Are you coming, Moony? Wormy?"

"I guess," said Remus, sighing. He closed his book and set his book gingerly on his pillow.

Peter got up and eagerly nodded, waiting for them to do something.

"But wait, are you just asking her 'cause we said to?" Scorpius asked seriously.

Sirius shook his head. "I already told you last night. I love her."

"Our Paddy has grown up," James said, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye. "No longer is he a man-whore, but now he is Hestia's knight in shining armor, and has been hooked by the little dark-haired beauty forever."

"Wow, that's something that I could imagine Scorpio coming up with," said Albus, and Scorpius glared at him while James laughed.

"I wouldn't talk just yet, Albert," said Sirius. "You've been hooked by the angel that is Marlene McKinnon."

Albus couldn't believe that everyone thought he fancied Marlene already. He had only just met her yesterday! Sure, Marlene was beautiful, but that didn't mean he fancied her. It meant he was well on his way there. Besides, he wasn't like his brother, James, who fell for Evie the minute he caught sight of her. Albus always knew he'd be different from his eccentric brother.

"I've only just met her!" Albus exclaimed. "How can I fancy her already?"

"The minute James saw Lily he was hooked," Sirius snorted. "And that was when he was eleven. He had some dirty thoughts when he was eleven, because I distinctly remember him trying to touch her bu-"

"Shut up Sirius!" James shouted. "That's not true!"

"Of course it's not," Remus snickered from his bed, and for once was on Sirius's side.

"You're evil, Moony," James muttered, and he shook his head. "Well, let's get going, Sirius, so you can get your date with Jones, and maybe when Lily sees how good of a friend I am, she'll say yes."

"Very unlikely," said Remus. "You'll have to do a lot more than that to win her over."

"How do you know? You've talked to her?" asked James.

"You do realize that just because you're not friends with Lily doesn't mean that I can't be?" Remus raised his eyebrow. "And it's just a fact."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," said Sirius, starting to get impatient. "Let's go now. Lead the way, Al."

Albus and Scorpius led the Marauders down the stairs and through the Gryffindor common room when Albus realized that he and Scorpius were supposed to meet Lily and the other girls at the Quidditch pitch. He nudged Scorpius, who immediately remembered.

"Hey, um, could you guys wait here for a minute?" Scorpius asked. "We need to get Hestia from the Astronomy classroom."

"Alright," said Sirius, sitting down on the couch in front of the fireplace.

"Great," said Albus, and he and Scorpius quickly exited Gryffindor Tower before sprinting down the moving staircase, out of the castle and to the Quidditch pitch, were he spotted Lily, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene. The sun was shining down on Marlene's hair, making it shimmer gold and Albus was briefly floating in the air before Scorpius slammed into him and they tumbled down the steps, landing at the girls' feet.

When Albus stood up and looked at the girls, he saw that they were all trying hard not to laugh. He noticed that half of the girls were clear and the other half were blurry, and he realized that his glasses had broke.

"Bloody glasses," Albus mumbled, getting up and taking off his glasses. He let them dangle from one hand.

"Let me see them," Marlene said, holding out her hand. He placed her glasses in her palm and she took out her wand. "Reparo." His glasses were as good as new. "Here you go, Al."

"Thanks, Marlene," he said, blushing when she put his glasses back on his face for him.

"You're welcome," said Marlene softly, and Albus felt like he was in the clouds.

Alice coughed. "Lovebirds."

Albus and Marlene both glared at her before Lily spoke.

"Anyway," she started with a ghost of a smile on her face, "what did he say? And where is he right now?"

"He's in the common room with James, Remus and Peter," Scorpius reported.

"Why are they all there?" asked Lily.

"They wanted to see Sirius ask Hestia out," said Albus.

"Weirdos," Emmeline said. "They do everything together. It's like they're dating, which would be gross 'cause they'd all be gay."

"Whatever," said Lily. "They're obviously not. I mean, just look at James. He asks me out all the time. And Sirius has dated half of the female population at Hogwarts, and Remus has-"

"Remus hasn't dated anyone," Alice reminded her.

"He hasn't dated at all?" Scorpius asked incredulously. "Merlin, he's like Al! They're dating virgins!"

Emmeline laughed hysterically and Marlene gave Albus a curious look, under which he blushed.

Lily also looked at Albus, and she cocked her head to the side.

"We have the same eyes," Lily mused, and Albus felt his stomach drop. He hoped that she wouldn't be too suspicious. "And you look a bit like James Potter, only… different, in a way I can't describe. I guess your face doesn't match his exactly, but-"

"People say that I look like other people all the time," said Albus, sighing. "My mum says I just have one of those faces."

Lily seemed to accept the answer. "My dad has one of those faces too."

"Okay, okay, we get it, now let's get Hestia up to the common room so Sirius can ask her out!" Emmeline said, and they quickly followed her back into the castle when they bumped into the Marauders outside of the Great Hall.

"What're you two doing with them?" Sirius asked. "Where's Hestia?"

"Uh, we were trying to find her when we bumped into Lily, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene," said Albus.

"Wait, there's Hestia!" James said, pointing into the Great Hall. "She's with your bloody brother, Padfoot!"

"WHAT?" Everyone winced at the volume of Sirius's voice.

Albus looked into the Great Hall and to his horror, he saw Regulus Black sitting very close to Hestia, who was giggling.

He looked back at Sirius to see that he was absolutely and completely enraged. Albus feared for his life. He remembered from his father's description of Sirius that he had an explosive temper, like his mother, Walburga Black.

"Well, fine then! I can ask someone else to Hogsmeade!" Sirius turned and saw a pretty brown-haired girl walking down the hall with a group of friends. "Oi, Ashleigh! Hogsmeade?"

Ashleigh sent him a flirtatious grin. "Sure, Sirius. Meet me at nine, right here." Then she and her giggling group of friends walked away.

"You are dead meat, Black," Emmeline growled. "How dare you? Have you ever thought that maybe Hestia is just tutoring Regulus, like she's supposed to?"

"She's not just tutoring him," Sirius grumbled. "Do you see how she's laughing?"

"Well, maybe-" Scorpius started when Sirius interrupted him.

"Whatever," said Sirius, starting to walk away. "I'm going to Hogsmeade with Ashleigh tomorrow, and that's that."

Albus sighed. "How'd this all become such a mess?"

* * *

><p>The next morning was a cloudy one, and no matter how hard the sun tried, it couldn't burn through the clouds. The weather seemed to match Albus's mood.<p>

He didn't know why he felt so affected by the Marauders, Lily, Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene, but he did. He became friends with all of them much quicker than he had become friends with Scorpius. It took two weeks for Albus and Scorpius to be friends. It took only a matter of minutes to be friends with the Marauders and the girls. Even though all of them were dead, and they were way older than him, he felt a connection to them, which was obvious, since he was related to some of them, but he felt like this was meant to happen. He was meant to write in Marlene McKinnon's journal, and he and Scorpius were meant to be here, even just for a minute longer.

He missed his brother James, and Fred, Roxanne, Rose, Lily, Dominique, Lucy, Molly, Hugo, Louis, Lorcan, Lysander, Victoire and Teddy, but they didn't make him feel like he belonged there completely. He wished it wasn't true, but it was.

"Al?" Albus almost laughed when he realized that he and Scorpius hadn't called each other by their last names in a long time.

"Yeah, Scorp?"

"Do you feel kinda… disappointed?"

Albus nodded. "Yeah, I do. I wish we were able to get Hestia her date with Sirius. I wish he was able to see that Hestia doesn't like Regulus, but him. And I can't believe that I almost thought that Hestia liked Regulus."

"Yeah," said Scorpius, sitting up. His hair was messy, but he wasn't making any move to try to fix it. "I wish we could fix this."

Albus's eyes widened. "Scorp, we can fix this! We just have to get Hestia to tell Sirius that she doesn't like Regulus!"

"That's brilliant, Al!" Scorpius got off his bed and smoothed his hair down. "I'll be ready in five minutes, tops."

"Today is already starting out to be a day of miracles," said Albus, grinning to himself as Scorpius disappeared into the bathroom.

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, Albus, Scorpius, Lily, Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene were gathered in the common room. Albus smiled sympathetically at Hestia, whose eyes were still red-rimmed.<p>

"Hestia, we're going to get you your date with Sirius," said Scorpius, and Lily gasped.

"You talked to him?"

"No, but if Hestia asks him, he'll say yes," said Albus, and Hestia shook her head.

"I don't want to ask him. I'll know if he likes me if he asks me," she said stubbornly.

"He does like you," Marlene said, putting a hand on Hestia's shoulder and smiling at Albus. "A lot. And that's why he asked Ashleigh out so quickly, because he was upset. He thought that you fancied Regulus, his brother."

"Marlene's right," Albus confirmed.

"I guess," said Hestia, shrugging off Marlene's hand. "Where is he?"

"He went down to the kitchens with James," said Lily. "I saw them leave a couple minutes before you all came down."

"Good," said Albus. "So, what're you all waiting for? We have to do this before Sirius goes with Ashleigh."

"He's right!" Emmeline exclaimed. "Let's go!" Everyone started rushing after her except for Albus and Hestia.

Albus was just about to gesture for Hestia to go ahead of him when she spoke with genuine gratitude.

"Thank you, Al," Hestia said a bit shyly. "I really appreciate you trying to get me a date with Sirius. You really didn't have to help. We barely know you, anyway."

"It's fine, Hestia," said Albus, and for a minute, he saw the older Hestia Jones, smiling fondly at a memory of her and Sirius during their Hogwarts years. "I'm really grateful that you've all accepted Scorpio and I into your group just after a day or two."

Hestia looked at him with a soft look. "I just feel like I'm supposed to know you, you know. That's why I trust you so much."

Albus couldn't say anything. He was too overwhelmed with emotions. She knew exactly what he was thinking. She felt that they were supposed to know each other, somehow. Even though he knew the older her, he was somehow supposed to know the younger her too.

She took his silence as a good thing, and she linked her arm with his and they walked out towards the moving staircase. He let her lead him down the stairs, and on the way, he silently hoped that he could stay in this time period for a long time.

* * *

><p>"There you two are!" Lily said as soon as Albus and Hestia stepped foot near the Hufflepuff entrance. "We've been waiting for five minutes. We have to do this before Sirius and James decide to leave."<p>

"We're ready," said Hestia, turning her head to smile at Albus. "We just had a quick talk."

He didn't know why, but he felt almost like he had a chance when he saw Marlene's face fall slightly. Maybe it meant that she might, just might, fancy him a little bit.

Alice and Emmeline looked concerned.

"Hes, you don't fancy Al-" Alice started when Albus and Hestia both protested.

"I don't fancy Hestia!" Albus couldn't believe that they would think that.

"Merlin no!" Hestia cried. "I love Siri-"

"You love him?" Lily asked, shocked. "How come you didn't tell me?"

"I wasn't sure till now!" Hestia defended herself.

"That's so sweet," Alice whispered to Emmeline, and Emmeline snorted.

"Congrats," said Marlene with a small smile. "You finally realized."

"Thanks," said Hestia. "Now, time for me to-"

"Hestia?" Everyone turned to the entrance to the kitchens and saw Sirius standing there with James just behind him with a muffin in his hand. "What're you all doing here?"

"Hestia has something to tell you," said Emmeline, glaring at Sirius. "And you better listen good."

"I don't fancy Regulus," Hestia stated. "He simply told me a joke, and I thought that it was funny." Sirius was about to interrupt her when she put her hand up, stopping him. "And I wanted to know if you'd go to Hogsmeade with me."

"So you don't fancy Regulus?" Sirius still appeared to be in denial.

"No." Hestia stood there, staring at Sirius when he reached over, picked her up and kissed her full on the lips.

"Ooh la la," Emmeline sang, and Scorpius wolf-whistled. Lily and Alice turned to each other and giggled. Albus and Marlene caught each other's gazes and smiled shyly at each other before watching the happy couple again.

Albus felt an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment. It was partly because of him that Hestia and Sirius were now together.

Before he knew it, Marlene had grabbed his hand and they were running up the stairs and past the Great Hall. She was laughing and her blonde hair was flying and he didn't mind that it was whipping his face. He couldn't see or hear anything but Marlene and her bell-like laughter, and he knew that this was going to be the best ride of his life.

* * *

><p>Three months later, Albus was used to living in 1977. He and Scorpius were still best friends with the Marauders and the girls. Sirius and Hestia were still dating, and Lily was starting to warm up to James a bit, but not by much. The Marauders were still very much into pranking, and sometimes, Albus and Scorpius would help them. Remus was the sole brain of all of their pranks, and James, Sirius, Albus, Scorpius and Peter would carry them out.<p>

It was almost Christmas. Actually, it was four days before. Because of Albus and Scorpius, the Marauders and the girls decided to stay with them at Hogwarts. Albus didn't want to ruin their vacations, but they all insisted on staying.

"Al?"

Marlene sat down beside Albus on the couch in the Gryffindor common room.

"Hey Marley," Albus said, smiling gently at her.

"Don't call me that," she laughed.

"You know that you secretly love it, Marley," said Albus, and she hit his arm playfully.

"Alright then. If I'm Marley, then you're Albie," she said.

"That's what my sister calls me," Albus said, and for a few seconds, he allowed himself to remember his little sister Lily Luna and his brother James Sirius.

"You've never told me her name," said Marlene, but not accusingly.

"Her name is, uh, Lila," said Albus, faltering for a minute, but looked up at her confidently.

"That's a pretty name," Marlene said, and they sat in silence for the next couple moments.

Out of all the things he loved about Marlene, he loved that she didn't feel the need to always talk. That was okay with him, because he didn't like to talk too much, like Scorpius or James or a couple of his cousins.

But he knew that he loved everything about Marlene because, and he just finally realized this about a month ago, he fancied Marlene.

After much teasing from the Marauders and the girls and Scorpius, he realized that it wasn't just an interest in her. It was a lot more.

But he was scared. He shouldn't fancy Marlene. She was dead in his time. And he knew that the longer he stayed, the greater the chance was that he could fall in love with her.

"Al?"

He did it again. She was waving her hand in front of his face with amusement gracing her features. Her blonde hair was falling in waves and it was oh-so shiny and smooth and…

"You're spacing out again," said Marlene, her blue eyes sparkling in the firelight.

"Oh, sorry," said Albus, sighing.

"Is something upsetting you?" she asked. "You can tell me. I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to."

"I'm just… I'm just thinking about my family. They went back to Norway to visit my grandparents, and they wanted me to stay so I could get used to staying here by myself. Same with Scorpio's parents."

"Are you from Norway, or were you born here and moved there?"

"I was born here, and we moved to Norway when I was three because my dad got a new job," said Albus. He felt bad about lying, especially to the Marauders and the girls, but most especially Marlene.

"Oh," she said. There was another silence until she spoke again. "Have you gone Christmas shopping yet?"

Albus's eyes widened. "Oh, I forgot! I'll have to go with Scorpio tomorrow! I can't believe I forgot about shopping for all of you!"

Marlene smiled. "It's alright. You're probably still getting used to the place, so you have a lot on your mind. If you want, I could bring you and Scorpio tomorrow, and show you the best places for shopping."

"No!" Albus quickly said, and he realized how mean that sounded. "Not that I don't want you to come, but I don't want you seeing your Christmas present early!"

To his relief, she understood. "I get it. Whenever Lily, Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and I go shopping, I always have to try to buy their gifts without them seeing, which is hard because there's four of them."

Albus laughed. "It's even hard to get a present for Scorpio without him seeing, and he's just one person!"

Marlene also laughed, but she turned serious. "A lot of the girls around school fancy Scorpio. Does he know that?"

"I don't know," said Albus, shrugging. "It took him a while to realize that Rose fancied him."

"Who's Rose?" Marlene asked.

"My cousin," Albus said, deciding that it was okay to use her real name. "She and Scorpio are still dating."

"I wish all of the girls knew that," said Marlene, closing her eyes briefly. "You can tell just from his expression that he's annoyed with them."

"They better watch out for themselves and not annoy him to much, because he's almost as bad as Sirius when he gets angry," Albus said, shuddering.

"Marlene? Al? Are you in here?" Emmeline and Alice came running into the common room. "You won't believe who Sirius was stuck under the mistletoe with!"

"Who?" Albus and Marlene asked at the same time, and they both blushed.

"Professor McGonagall!" Alice and Emmeline burst out laughing, and so did Albus and Marlene.

"Does Hestia know?" Marlene asked in between laughs.

"Yeah, she was the one who put the mistletoe there!" Alice said, and she looked at both of them. "What are you doing here? You both seem so far away."

"We were keeping each other company," said Marlene, and Emmeline waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Oh I bet you- Ow! Marlene!" Marlene had hit Emmeline in the gut. "You're going to pay for that!"

"You have to catch me," said Marlene, and grinned at Albus before running out of the common room with Emmeline on her heels.

Alice laughed. "Don't you just love us, Al?"

"Yes I do," said Albus, and Alice pulled him into a hug.

"Though of course you love Marlene more," said Alice when she broke the hug, and she winked at him.

"I'm not even going to answer that," said Albus, and Alice looked at him hard.

"Do you fancy her?" she asked.

Albus decided that he could tell her. He knew that Alice wasn't the type to gossip about those types of things.

"Yes, I do," said Albus. "But don't say anything, not even to Lily or anyone else."

"I promise," said Alice, and she smiled at him. "How about we go down to the kitchens? Lily, Hestia, Sirius, James, Remus, Peter and Scorpius are down there."

"Alright," said Albus, and they exited the common room and were walking down the stairs. "I was getting hungry anyway."

* * *

><p>It was Christmas morning, and Albus, Scorpius, the Marauders and the girls were gathered in the Gryffindor common room. They were the only ones from Gryffindor to stay over Christmas vacation.<p>

Two days ago, Albus and Scorpius had combined the money that they had in their pockets from their time and bought gifts for everyone from the both of them.

For James, they had gotten a case for his glasses that was in the shape of a broom, with a Snitch attached to it, which held wipes.

For Sirius, they had gotten a mirror charmed to tell him how good he looked whenever he asked. That got a laugh out of everyone, because they all knew how obsessed he was with his looks, and especially his hair. Sirius had even agreed to let Scorpius use it if he needed to.

They had gotten Remus a book about Defense Against the Dark Arts, which he loved, because he wanted to be the DADA professor at Hogwarts when he grew up.

It had taken a lot of convincing on Scorpius's part, but he finally managed to convince Albus to get Peter a present. They settled on getting him socks that yelled if they were dirty.

For Lily, they had gotten a biography on William Shakespeare along with a book of poems. Lily nearly slapped James when she noticed that he was taking notes about her presents. James said that he could use it for future reference.

For Hestia, they had gotten chocolates and any other kind of sweet she could imagine from Honeydukes. Remus pretended to pout when she opened her present, but he was fine after she shared the chocolate with him.

They had gotten Alice a photo album. The girls and Alice's boyfriend Frank Longbottom had supplied Albus and Scorpius with pictures that they filled with the album with. She nearly burst out in tears. Unfortunately, Frank couldn't stay because he had to visit his father in the hospital, but Alice said that the gift almost made up for it.

For Emmeline, they gotten a book of hexes and jinxes, which she almost immediately started reading.

And lastly, even though Scorpius helped pay, this present was solely from Albus to Marlene. He had gotten Marlene a silver locket that shimmered gold in the light. Instead, there were two spots for pictures, and Albus put her picture in, and left the other side empty. He hoped that one day, she would put his picture into that empty side.

"Thank you, Al," said Marlene, gazing at her locket lovingly. "It's beautiful."

"You're welcome," he replied, blushing at all of the others' stares. He knew that they were onto him.

"Happy Christmas indeed," said Sirius, lounging back with his arm around Hestia, who was cuddled up beside him. "But, James and I found this Howler from my lovely mother, and we decided that we'd let you all listen." He took out a red envelope from his pocket and opened it, when they heard a woman's piercing voice scream.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK! YOU'RE A DISGRACE TO THE NOBLE AND MOST ANCIENT HOUSE OF BLACK! YOU'RE A DISAPPOINTMENT! A FAILURE! A MUDBLOOD LOVER! SCUM! FRIEND OF THE FILTH OF THE EARTH! FROM NOW ON, REGULUS IS OUR ONLY SON! YOU'RE A DIRTY, DISGUSTING CREATURE! BE GONE FROM THE HOUSE OF BLACK AND JOIN THE OTHER FILTH LIKE YOUR COUSIN AND YOUR UNCLE! DISGRACE! YOU DON'T DESERVE THE NAME OF BLACK!"

Albus swore that he must've been deaf for the first few seconds after the Howler ended.

"That was your mother?" Lily asked, shocked. "My mother would never say such things to me!"

"That's your mother, not mine," said Sirius, who apparently had found the Howler hilarious. "Merlin, she's an entertainer, I'll give her that, if not a narrow-minded, cruel, ugly old hag."

Hestia appeared frozen before the firelight showed a single tear falling from her face.

"Hestia-" Sirius started when she took the envelope from him, ripped it, and put it in the fire. When she turned around, there was a fiery determination in her eyes.

"You can tell your mother that your Mudblood girlfriend said hello," she said strongly, and Albus felt extremely proud of her.

"Don't call yourself a Mud-"

"Why not? I'm a Mudblood, and I'm bloody proud of it! Right, Lily?" Hestia and Lily stood up and linked arms.

"Mudbloods, and proud of it," said Lily, her green eyes flashing, and Albus swore that he saw James drooling.

"So hot," Sirius whispered to James, and Lily rolled her eyes while Hestia winked at Sirius.

"It's still a happy Christmas," Marlene said to everyone, though she was looking at Albus. "Why don't we go down to the kitchens and have a Christmas feast."

"That's a brilliant idea," said Albus, and they all headed down, smiling and laughing and talking, and Albus couldn't remember ever having a better Christmas.

* * *

><p>Four months later, in April, was a full moon. The Marauders and Lily still hadn't told Albus and Scorpius about Remus being a werewolf. The only reason Lily knew was because she was close to Remus. Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene didn't know yet. Lily even knew about James, Sirius and Peter's Animagus forms. Albus was tempted to tell them, but for Remus's sake, he kept his mouth shut.<p>

It was during dinner when the Marauders rushed out of the Great Hall, claiming they had a lot of homework. Lily, of course, defended their lie, but the girls knew that the Marauders never did their homework on Friday. Not even Remus did.

"Lily, do you know something that we don't?" Emmeline asked, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"No, of course not," Lily said quickly. "What would I know? It's not like they have something to hide."

"Lily Lauren Evans," Emmeline growled. "Tell us."

"She doesn't have to if she doesn't want to," said Marlene. "But I am curious."

"I can't tell you here," said Lily in a low voice. "And it involves Remus most of all. But please don't judge him. It's not his fault."

Hestia's eyes widened. "I know what the secret is." She stood up so quickly that the plates on the table clattered. "Let's go. I have to see Sirius."

Everyone got up immediately and they went up the stairs and into the common room, where the Marauders were sitting and talking in low voices.

"Sirius!" Hestia ran over to him and jumped into his arms. "Be careful tonight."

"What do you mean?" he asked nervously.

"We know," said Scorpius.

"What do you know?" James asked, twiddling his thumbs.

"We know that Remus is a werewolf," said Marlene, and Lily gasped.

"How'd you figure it out?"

Marlene lowered her eyes. "It's a full moon tonight, and I've been hearing boys' voices late at night in the common room since first year."

Remus didn't say anything, but he swallowed loudly. "You don't- You don't hate me, do you?"

Marlene's head snapped up to look at him. "Of course we don't! You're our friend, and we won't hate you because of something that you can't control!"

Albus put his arm around Marlene in a friendly gesture. "I agree with Marlene."

Alice stepped forward. "I agree with them."

"And so do I," Emmeline declared. "It's up to you, Remus. What do you think?"

Remus smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," said Emmeline, and Albus nodded.

"And now, since that's all out in the open, I must confess that I am an Animagus," said Sirius. "A black dog, because I'm scruffy but lovable!"

Hestia rolled her eyes. "Normally I'd disagree, but this is true."

"And James is a stag," said Sirius. "Peter's a rat."

"You're already Animaguses?" asked Alice, amazed. "That's incredible considering how difficult it is."

"But we're illegal Animaguses," said Peter.

"We all suspected that," Scorpius said. "We're pretty sure that if the Ministry knew, you'd be expelled."

"It's still very dangerous," said Hestia, looking at the Marauders. "But werewolves don't hurt other animals, right?"

"Right," said James.

"When did you find out?" Emmeline asked.

"In second year," James replied. "To be honest, it was easy. Nobody has a mother who's sick every month and only during the full moon. Moony could never lie very well."

"That's not true, I can lie very well depending on the situation," said Remus.

"We have to go!" Sirius said, looking at his watch. "C'mon!"

"Be safe," Marlene and Alice chorused as the Marauders left the common room.

"They'll be alright," said Albus, and Marlene turned to face him.

"How do you know?" she asked quietly.

"I just know," Albus said with a small smile, and he put an arm around Marlene, thankful that she didn't shrug it off.

* * *

><p>Another month passed by, and Albus was probably failing his classes, and losing hope of finding a way back to his time, but one thing was for sure: he was absolutely in love with Marlene McKinnon.<p>

Actually, in a way, he always knew, even from the start, that he would fall for her, but now he knew for sure that he was in love with her.

From the moment he woke up to the moment he went to sleep, she was always on his mind. His palms started sweating, and his heart raced when he was around her. When she touched his arm or something, he blushed. It was the most uncomfortable thing, to be in love. But he loved it.

Tomorrow was a Saturday, and he was planning on taking her to Hogsmeade. Of course, he had to ask her first. Scorpius and the Marauders tried building up his courage, but he just couldn't bring himself to. What if she said no? Albus shook his head, trying not to think of that. Some 'Gryffindor' he was. No wonder why he was actually in Slytherin.

"Al!" Lily came running up to him on his way to Divination. Scorpius was probably already in the classroom, and so were Hestia, Alice, Emmeline and Marlene. And the Marauders. "Wait up!"

"Hey Lily," Albus said, putting a smile on his face, and she smiled back at him.

"Hi Al," she said, and they both walked at a comfortable pace up the stairs. "So, are you going to Hogsmeade with anyone tomorrow?"

"No," said Albus, and Lily whipped her head around to face him.

"I know you want to ask Marlene," she said, her green eyes flashing. "And I know for a fact that she wants you to ask her."

"She does?" Albus asked, and Lily nodded. "I'll ask her after class then."

"Good," said Lily, and she started running up the stairs.

"Thanks for waiting for me!" he called, and her laughter echoed off the walls.

* * *

><p>After Divination, Albus and Marlene were walking silently back towards Gryffindor Tower when he stopped.<p>

"Al? What are you doing?" Marlene asked curiously.

"Marley, I have something to ask you," said Albus nervously.

"You don't have to be nervous, Al," said Marlene, smiling gently at him. "You know you can tell me anything."

"Will you go with me to Hogsmeade?" Albus asked so quickly that Marlene couldn't hear it. She asked him to repeat what he just said. "Will you go with me to Hogsmeade, Marlene?"

Marlene didn't answer immediately, but slowly, her smile widened into a grin. "Yes!" She put her arms around him. "I've been waiting for you to ask me since Christmas," she whispered in his ear.

Albus grinned. "I've been gathering up the courage."

She kissed his cheek. "I'm glad you have."

* * *

><p>The next morning, Albus woke up with an apprehensive feeling. He was still in awe that Marlene agreed to go out with him. And he was nervous that he would mess this date up. He wanted it to go perfectly. And, just maybe, if this date went well, he could tell her that he loved her. Maybe.<p>

"Albus Severus Potter, get your arse up!" Scorpius yelled from beside Albus's bed. "I need to beautify you so your date with Marlene will go smoothly!"

Albus groaned. "Seriously, Scorp? You don't need to 'beautify' me."

"Yes, yes I do," said Scorpius, running his fingers through Albus's dark hair. "It's all about the look."

"Not with Marlene," said Albus, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Those things aren't important to her. Those things are never important if you really like someone."

"You're right," Scorpius sighed, and he kneeled down beside Albus's bed. "I miss Rose."

"So do I," said Albus. "But not like that, of course. I miss James and Lily and all my cousins, especially Victoire and Hugo and Fred and Dominique. Dom."

"Someday, Rose Weasley will be Rose Malfoy," said Scorpius wistfully, and Albus scrunched up his nose.

"Hopefully that won't be too soon," Albus muttered. "It's weird to hear my best friend talk about marrying my favorite cousin."

"Oh yeah, what about Marlene? Someday, she'll be Marlene Potter," said Scorpius, and then he realized. "Wait, no-"

"She'll never be Marlene Potter," said Albus sadly. "She'll die Marlene McKinnon. Dead at twenty-one years old."

"Well…" Scorpius trailed off. "Just make the most of it now, and savor your time with Marlene while you have it, because I think I know when we're going back to our time."

Albus gasped. "When?"

"Remember what Marlene's journal said? 'This is my life at Hogwarts in 1977'? I bet we'll go back during the last day of school."

"Scorpius, that's brilliant," said Albus. "But now I'll only have till the end of the year to date Marlene."

"It's better than nothing," said Scorpius, shrugging. "But c'mon. This is not what you should be thinking about before a date. Let's beautify you a bit and think of happy things, like Marlene and how you'll snog her senseless at the end of the date."

"That is a happy thought," said Albus, smiling. "Alright Scorp. Beautify."

* * *

><p>Albus was waiting for Marlene near the entrance of the Great Hall. He had waited for five minutes and there was still no sign of her. He was starting to worry when he saw her descending the staircase.<p>

She was wearing a knee-length denim skirt, a floral blouse and flat shoes. Her wavy blonde hair was up in a bun with a few strands out. She looked absolutely beautiful. He was mesmerized.

"Hi Al," Marlene said shyly, much like Hestia.

"Marlene, hi! Wow, you look beautiful!" said Albus, still unable to speak properly.

She smiled. "Thank you. Now, how about getting to the Three Broomsticks before the place fills up completely."

"That's a great idea," said Albus, holding out his hand. "Shall we?"

"We shall," Marlene said, grinning, and they walked out of Hogwarts, hand-in-hand.

The spring air was warm, and the smell of fresh rain still lingered. The birds were chirping and singing their songs, and the sun was shining, casting a golden glow on the world around them.

"It's a beautiful day," said Marlene, watching a bird above soar through the light blue sky.

"Yes, it is," said Albus, looking at her as she looked around in wonder.

Finally, they reached Hogsmeade Village, and they went to the Three Broomsticks, where Madam Rosmerta was setting up tables.

"Hello, you two!" Rosmerta said cheerfully. "There's a table right over there! I'll be over in a minute!"

Albus and Marlene headed to the back and sat at a table next to a window.

"So, what would you two like?" asked Rosmerta.

"Um, how about two Butterbeers?" Albus looked at Marlene for approval. "Yes, two Butterbeers please."

"Alright," said Rosmerta. "I'll be right back with your drinks."

Marlene looked around before smiling at him. "Last night, I could barely sleep. I was so excited for today."

"Was?" Albus asked, his eyebrow raised.

She blushed. "Well, I still am, but I was excited last night too."

"It's alright, Marley, I know what you meant," said Albus. "I just hope I don't disappoint you."

"You could never disappoint me, Al," said Marlene, and she put her warm hand over his cold one. She looked up into his green eyes with her blue ones and blue and green practically made turquoise on the spot.

* * *

><p>Albus couldn't believe how quickly the year went. He and Marlene have been together for a month now, and were very much in love. However, he still hadn't told her that he wasn't from her time. He and Scorpius were still known as Albert Potts and Scorpio Malfitz from Durmstrang.<p>

But there was one more thing. It was the second to last day of school. It was almost time for him and Scorpius to leave. And he couldn't stand the thought of leaving his Marlene. His Marley. And the Marauders and the girls.

"What's wrong, Al? You've seemed down for the last week." Marlene put a soothing arm on his shoulder. "I can try to help you."

"It's just-" Albus stopped himself and thought of a lie. Another one. "I'm going back to Durmstrang for my seventh year."

A single tear fell down her cheek, but she still smiled. "Why would you be afraid to tell me that? I understand."

"I know," Albus sighed. "We'll still write each other, when there's time."

"You sound like there won't be time," said Marlene, looking at him with a concerned expression.

"There might not," said Albus, shrugging. "And there might be. I hope there is."

"I hope so too," said Marlene, leaning against him. "Have you told Lily and the others?"

"Scorp is telling them right now," Albus said.

She nodded. "Let's just enjoy the time that we have together before you have to leave."

Albus could barely bring himself to let a small smile on his face. "Yes."

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you're both leaving," said Lily, standing by James, Sirius and Remus.<p>

"I can't believe it either," said Albus. "But thanks for being such great friends, and such a great girlfriend." He meant the last part for Marlene.

"We're still going to try a long-distance relationship, of course," said Marlene, with a small, heartbroken smile.

"Of course you are," said Emmeline, putting her arm around Marlene and giving Albus an extremely dangerous glare.

Alice sniffled. "It's going to be such a boring year without you."

Hestia nodded. "It definitely will be."

"It'll be alright," said Scorpius. "You survived through Hogwarts without us, and you can do that for one more year."

"We just feel so connected to you," said Lily, and Albus caught Hestia's gaze.

"So do we," said Albus, and he hugged Lily, Hestia and Alice at the same time before hugging Emmeline and giving high-fives to the Marauders. When he got to Marlene, he gave her a sweet kiss on the lips, to which James and Sirius wolf-whistled.

"I'll miss you Albert," Marlene whispered.

Albus felt his heart lurch. He would've liked it better if she called him Albus. "I'll miss you too, Marley. Never forget that I love you."

"I won't."

And with that final response, Albus and Scorpius took their 'luggage' and exited the Gryffindor common room. They didn't know the exact time that they would go back to their time, but they knew it would be soon.

"Al! Wait! You forgot your-" Lily was running up to them when she stopped and looked at them in horror. "Oh my gosh, you're shimmering!"

Albus knew that it was time, but he had to tell Marlene, or he'd be guilty forever. "Get Marlene! Quickly! And don't come back! Just tell her to come here!"

Lily ran off without another word, and ten seconds later, Marlene was rushing towards them, her blonde hair flying, her blue eyes frantic.

"Al? Scorp? What's going on? Why are you shimmering?" she asked, her eyes scared and concerned.

"Marlene, Marley," said Albus, taking her hand with her shimmering one. "We're not from here."

"I know, you're from Norway," she said.

"No, we're not from this time," said Albus. "Me and Scorpius come from the 2020's."

"That's impossible." Marlene shook her head violently, but then her head snapped up. "My journal!"

"We found it, in our common room. Slytherin," said Albus.

"I can't believe it got there," Marlene whispered.

"It doesn't matter," Albus said, letting go of her hand and shaking her shoulders lightly. "I'm sorry I lied to you, but I had to."

"It's alright, I'd do the same thing if I was in your situation," said Marlene, and she gave him a small smile. "I'm guessing your name isn't Albert Potts."

"It's Albus Potter," said Albus, and she gasped. "Yes, I'm related to James, but don't tell him. And Scorpio Malfitz is actually Scorpius Malfoy, related to Lucius Malfoy."

"Wow," said Marlene, staring at him in wonder. "No wonder you have James's hair and Lily's eyes. They must get married and have you!"

"No, I'm their grandson," said Albus. She let out a small oh, and he laughed before turning serious again.

"Albus! Oh my God, look at me!" Scorpius screamed before he disappeared completely.

"I love you, Marlene McKinnon!" Albus shouted as he felt a strong wind blow, and knew he was about to disappear.

"I love you, Albus Potter, always," he heard Marlene say before he disappeared from 1977 forever.

* * *

><p>"Scorpius? Albus?"<p>

Albus groaned and rubbed his eyes groggily before seeing his cousin, Rose Weasley, waving her hands in front of their faces.

"Are you alright?" she asked, concerned.

"Rose!" Scorpius shot straight up and kissed her frantically before she pushed him away.

"What's going on? Why are you asleep in the middle of the common room?"

"How are you even in the Slytherin common room when you're a Gryffindor?" Albus asked.

"Scorp told me the password," said Rose, and she looked at Albus's hand. "What's that?"

Albus noticed that Marlene's red journal was in his hands, and even though he was heartbroken that he had left her in 1977, he smiled.

"A journal full of memories." He knew that Rose had no idea what he was talking about, but she still smiled at him, and he knew he'd be alright.

* * *

><p>Five years later, Albus Potter was sitting on the front porch of his home, basking in the sun. He'd finally gotten a day off. He was an Auror, and while there usually wasn't anything too exhausting about the job, it was the paperwork that killed.<p>

He was content with his life. He had been best man at Scorpius and Rose's wedding, and he had been to Victoire's wedding. Teddy and Lily were also married, and were expected their first child, who they had already named Nymphadora Lupin II. Even though the first Nymphadora, otherwise known as Tonks, had hated her name, Lily was in love with it. She and Andromeda Tonks had a lot in common when it came to their taste in baby names.

The only person that was missing was Marlene, of course. He hadn't married out of loyalty to her, and hadn't been on another date. Scorpius understood why, and didn't push him.

Whenever he thought of Marlene, tears came to his eyes, but he didn't wipe them away. He let them fall.

But he didn't want to cry just now. He wanted to enjoy his day off without crying. But that was before he saw someone walking up the street, looking completely and utterly lost.

He looked at her curiously, not knowing why he felt so weird. Suddenly, she looked up at him, and he gasped.

She ran up to him, and he to her, and before he could say anything else, they were kissing desperately and passionately, making up for the lost time.

When she pulled away, she smiled and ran her hand through his black hair.

"Albus," she said.

"Marlene," he said, and the only person who could ever make his life complete was with him again.

**So, what'd you think? This took me about two weeks to write! Anyway, if there are any mistakes, please tell me! This is the longest chapter I've ever written in my life, so if I rushed it a bit, I'm sorry! I originally planned for this to only be 5,000 words tops! Obviously, it went about 11,000 over that! If there are any mistakes, please excuse them! I didn't get to proofread the whole thing! Please review! **


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